By Dominick Hussey June 22, 2025 0 Comments Trauma

Autoimmune Disease and Trauma: Understanding the Link

Today, we will delve into the intricate relationship between autoimmune diseases and trauma, examining how emotional and psychological factors play a significant role in the health of our immune system. Research has shown that experiences of trauma can trigger or exacerbate autoimmune conditions, highlighting the need to understand the mind-body connection (Bookwalter et al, 2020). Throughout our exploration, we will uncover the various ways in which stress and emotional distress influence immune responses and contribute to the onset of these diseases. Additionally, we will discuss practical tools and therapeutic approaches that can support the healing process for individuals affected by autoimmune conditions. This will include techniques such as mindfulness, cognitive-behavioural therapy, and other holistic practices that promote emotional well-being and support immune health. By integrating these therapeutic strategies, we aim to empower individuals on their journey toward autoimmune healing and overall wellness.

Understanding Autoimmune Diseases and the Nervous System
The Role of Trauma and the Nervous System in Autoimmune Disease
The Interconnection of Emotions, Boundaries, and Autoimmune Disease
The Science Behind Stress, Inflammation, and Autoimmune Syndrome
Personal Journeys: Stories of Healing and Hope
Practical Tools for Supporting Autoimmune Healing
Reframing Autoimmune Language and Mindset
The Importance of Commitment and Repetition in Healing
Conclusion: A Holistic Vision for Autoimmune Healing

Understanding Autoimmune Diseases and the Nervous System

What Is Autoimmune Disease?

An autoimmune disease occurs when the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks its own cells, tissues, or organs, rather than protecting them. Under normal conditions, the immune system distinguishes between self and foreign invaders such as viruses and bacteria. However, autoimmune disease disrupts this mechanism, causing chronic inflammation, tissue damage, and dysfunction. Common symptoms include fatigue, joint pain, skin rashes, and digestive issues. Women represent about 75% of autoimmune diagnoses and are often affected by multiple autoimmune conditions simultaneously(Angum et al, 2020).

Beyond Infection: Other Threats the Immune System Responds To

Infections do not solely trigger autoimmune dysfunction. Many other “threats” can cause the immune system to become hypervigilant and reactive, including:

Chronic stress and mismanaged stress responses
Unprocessed trauma and emotional repression
Boundaries that are violated or absent
Toxic beliefs, limiting thoughts, and poor emotional self-care
Sensory deficits and nervous system dysregulation
Profound disconnection from self and authentic expression

These complex internal and external stressors create an ongoing perception of danger in the body’s defence system. The immune system’s response is a protective one, mistaking internal signals for external threats.

The Role of Trauma and the Nervous System in Autoimmune Disease

Trauma as a Root Cause

Trauma, especially complex trauma spanning from early childhood through adulthood, profoundly affects the nervous system’s regulation. Many autoimmune sufferers have histories of unresolved trauma, which compounds stress responses and leads to nervous system dysregulation. When the nervous system remains in a chronic state of hypervigilance, the immune system is continuously triggered to produce inflammatory proteins that, over time, damage healthy tissues.

Nervous System Healing: A Key to Autoimmune Recovery

Healing the nervous system through techniques such as meditation, somatic practices, and neurotherapy holds significant promise for individuals with autoimmune diseases. The immune system is deeply linked to the nervous system’s perception of safety. By calming and regulating the nervous system, it is possible to reduce inflammation and promote physical healing in conjunction with medical treatments.

Neuropractitioner Anna Gizelman shares her personal journey with lupus, emphasizing how exploring and healing her nervous system and trauma dramatically improved her autoimmune symptoms beyond what traditional medicine predicted possible (Trauma Rewired, 2024), . These experiences highlight the multidimensional nature of healing, which encompasses physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects.

The Interconnection of Emotions, Boundaries, and Autoimmune Disease

Emotional Suppression and Autoimmune Flare-ups

Many individuals with autoimmune conditions struggle to identify and express their emotions. Emotional suppression, especially of anger and grief, creates internal stress that the body manifests as inflammation and autoimmune flare-ups. Emotional expression practices—using breath, movement, voice, and somatic awareness—can release these tensions and regulate the nervous system.

Boundaries: The Invisible Bridges of Health

Boundaries are fundamental to health at physical, emotional, and energetic levels. For those with autoimmune disease, boundary violations often trace back to early attachment wounds and survival strategies such as fawning, fleeing, or freezing. These patterns lead to chronic nervous system dysregulation and self-abandonment, which increases vulnerability to autoimmune conditions.

The failure to establish or uphold clear personal boundaries can increase stress, hypervigilance, and feelings of shame—all of which can fuel inflammatory processes in the body. Learning to set, maintain, and receive boundaries safely helps to lower systemic stress and promote immune balance.

The Science Behind Stress, Inflammation, and Autoimmune Syndrome

Chronic Stress and the HPA Axis

Stress activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, the body’s central stress response system. Acute stress produces adrenaline, preparing the body for immediate action, but chronic stress shifts this to prolonged cortisol release. Cortisol stimulates the immune system to create inflammatory proteins designed to heal tissue and fight pathogens.

When this inflammation becomes chronic due to persistent stress or trauma, the system becomes overactivated. The immune response becomes confused and may begin to attack its own body cells, mistaking them for foreign invaders—leading to autoimmune disease development or flare-ups.

Shame and Inflammation: The Hidden Link

Toxic shame—deep internalized beliefs of unworthiness and badness—is a significant driver of inflammation. Shame activates the nervous system’s threat response similarly to physical danger and perpetuates chronic stress states. It compromises the ability to emotionally self-regulate and worsens autoimmune symptoms.

Recognizing and working through shame-related emotions reduces inflammation and improves immune function. Releasing shame requires embodied awareness, gentle self-compassion, and supportive therapeutic tools that reconnect mind, body, and nervous system.

Personal Journeys: Stories of Healing and Hope

Anna Gizelman’s Story: Lupus and Nervous System Work

Anna was diagnosed with lupus at 36 during a period of intense relational and life stress around the decision to have children. Prior to diagnosis, she experienced symptoms she attributed to lifestyle factors but ignored deeper signs. Through increasingly dedicated nervous system healing—learning applied neurology, meditation, emotional processing, and diet adjustments—Anna experienced remarkable improvements, surprising even her doctors with her blood work and functional ability.

Her story underscores the importance of addressing not only physical symptoms but also developmental trauma and deep-seated emotional patterns (Trauma Rewired, 2024).

Elizabeth Kristoff’s Story: Childhood Stress and Autoimmune Flare-Ups

Elizabeth deals with the long-term impact of childhood stress, a family history of autoimmune diseases, and early trauma. Her autoimmune symptoms, including celiac manifestations and inflammatory flare-ups, correlate strongly with relational stress and dysregulated nervous system states. She emphasizes the role of emotional expression practices in reducing symptom intensity and creating safety in the body.

Both Anna and Elizabeth highlight that autoimmune conditions are never just physical—they are intertwined with psychological, emotional, relational, and spiritual factors ( (Trauma Rewired, 2024).

Practical Tools for Supporting Autoimmune Healing

Nervous System Regulation Techniques

Somatic Awareness: Cultivating body awareness to detect early signs of dysregulation
Breathwork and Meditation: Calming the nervous system and shifting stress responses
Movement and Emotional Expression: Using voice, movement, and tears to discharge stored trauma
Applied Neurology Practices: Specific neurological exercises designed to support nervous system healing

Building Healthy Boundaries

Learning to recognize personal limits and communicate them assertively
Reframing self-protection as an act of self-love rather than selfishness
Addressing fawning, people-pleasing, and dissociation patterns through therapy or coaching

Emotional Processing and Shame Work

Developing skills to identify and express difficult emotions safely
Using therapeutic modalities to uncover and release toxic shame
Cultivating self-compassion and challenging harsh internal narratives

Reframing Autoimmune Language and Mindset

Moving Away from “Self-Attack” Narratives

The common description of autoimmune diseases as the body “attacking itself” is misleading and can exacerbate shame and disconnection. Instead, it’s more accurate to understand autoimmune responses as protective and adaptive—albeit misdirected—responses rooted in an overactive nervous system and chronic stress.

Recognizing the body as an ally and working collaboratively with it opens pathways to healing and resilience.

Questioning Medical Limitations and Encouraging Holistic Care

Many conventional medical approaches focus on managing symptoms with medications and may provide little support for emotional or nervous system healing. While medication is often necessary, integrating body-centered therapies such as Osteopathy empowers individuals to reclaim agency and experience profound improvements.

Practitioners and patients alike can benefit from acknowledging the multi-layered nature of autoimmune illnesses and expanding healing efforts beyond standard biomedical models.

The Importance of Commitment and Repetition in Healing

Healing autoimmune disease and nervous system dysregulation requires ongoing, consistent work. Improvements often come from the “minimal effective dose” practiced frequently rather than sporadic, occasional interventions. Like training a muscle, rewiring nervous system patterns depends on steady and repeated engagement with healing tools.

Setting realistic expectations and compassionate patience are essential as this process unfolds over months and years.

Conclusion: A Holistic Vision for Autoimmune Healing

Autoimmune disease is a complex, multi-dimensional condition deeply connected to trauma, nervous system regulation, emotional expression, and relational health. Medical science alone cannot fully address the intricate web of causes and manifestations. By embracing a holistic approach that honors the mind-body-spirit connection, individuals can experience profound healing, resilience, and empowerment.

This integrated perspective encourages:

Recognizing autoimmune symptoms as messages from the body
Healing the nervous system through neurobiology-informed practices
Expressing and processing emotions to reduce inflammation
Setting and maintaining healthy boundaries to protect self
Challenging toxic shame and cultivating self-compassion
Committing to consistent, embodied healing work

Change begins not just in the mind but deep within the nervous system, where safety, safety perception, and emotional truth reside. This pathway offers hope far beyond chronic illness and opens the door to wholeness and vitality.

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References

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